Six Freezer-Friendly Meal Recipes

Here are six freezer-friendly meal recipes for busy moms and students preparing for the onslaught of classes and extracurricular activities starting in a week and a half.  These meals freeze well and reheat well if you prepare and store them well and follow some tips and tricks I’ve learned.

Moussaka

Moussaka is sometimes described as Greek lasagna.  Instead of layers of pasta noodles, this dish uses layers of grilled or fried eggplant.  And instead of a mozzarella topping, this dish is topped with bechamel sauce.  I’ve provided some vegan and gluten free variations for the topping as well.

1 large eggplant sliced 1/3 inch thick

Filling:

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 lb. ground lamb (or Yves Ground Round)

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 onion finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

2 cans tomatoes, crushed and drained

1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley

Bechamel:

1 1/2 tbsp. butter

3 tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 1/2 c. milk or almond milk

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Pan fry or roast or grill eggplant slices.  Set aside.   To make filling, brown lamb with olive oil in pan, 8-10 minutes (veggie ground round does not need to be browned).  Set meat aside, drained on paper towel.  In a large pot, fry onions until translucent, about 5 minutes.  Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute more.  Add allspice, tomatoes and parsley.  Add browned meat to pot and stir to combine.  Raise heat, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, about 10 minutes.  If using veggie ground round, add at the last 2 minutes.

For the bechamel, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Whisk in flour and cook, stirring, about 2 minutes.  Gradually pour in milk, whisking to incorporate.  Add garlic cloves and bring to a boil while continuing to whisk.  Reduce heat and simmer, whisking frequently until sauce is thickened.  Add in parmesan and take out garlic cloves.

To assemble, lightly oil a lasagna pan.  Line the bottoms with half the eggplant.  Layer half the filling on top of eggplant, then remaining eggplant, then remaining filling.

Pour the bechamel sauce over the top.  At this point, you can cover the pans with foil and freeze or bake at 425 degrees until top is browned and bubbling, about 40 min.

Notes:

-You can bake the frozen casserole straight from the freezer at 375 degrees for about 1 1/2 housr or thaw overnight in the fridge and bake at 425 for 1 hour.

-To make this dish vegan, instead of meat use 2 cups of cooked lentils added in with the tomatoes or 2 packages of Yves Veggie Ground Round.  Veggie ground round should not be overcooked, or it will get rubbery.  Add it in at the very last minute just to heat it through before assembling the casserole.   For the bechamel sauce, use Earth Balance vegan butter, Almond Breeze unsweetened almond milk and Daiya cheese or Vitamin B flakes instead of parmesan.

-You may also use mashed potato for the topping, which is vegan AND gluten-free, but mashed potato does not freeze well with this dish; it makes it watery.  If you’re using mashed potato, freeze the casserole without the topping, as potatoes will make it watery.  Add the topping  just before baking.

-Another gluten-free alternative to the topping is using a sauce made from plain yogurt (three 750 ml containers worth, drained through a cheesecloth for 30 minutes), 2 eggs whipped until doubled in volume and foamy, salt and pepper and parmesan or vitamin B flakes.  Mix all items until fluffy.  This sauce can top the moussaka and be frozen all together.

Hardy Tomato Pasta Sauce

I’ve never been one to use a plain pasta sauce that only consists of one colour.  This sauce is multi-coloured, kind of a meal by itself, and packed with nutrients your body will thank you for.  I also use this for my lasagna dish.

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, minced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 pounds ground beef/pork/turkey/veggie ground round (added at the last minute of cooking)

1 pound Italian sausage or chorizo or Tofurkey Vegetarian Italian Sausage (added at the last minute of cooking)

2 cups pound sliced mushrooms, sliced

2 carrots, minced

2 stalks celery, minced

1 can tomatoes, crushed

2 cans plain tomato sauce base

1/2 cup red wine

1 bunch chopped basil

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 bunch chopped parsley

¼ bunch chopped cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

½ tsp allspice

½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp cumin

1 bunch broccoli, cut into small florets

Optional add-ons:

-1 bunch cauliflower, cut into small florets

-1 bunch spinach or chard or kale, chopped

Sweat onions and garlic in a stock pot with oil.  Brown the meat.  Add mushrooms until most of the moisture is out.  Add the carrots and celery and canned tomatoes and sautee 2 minutes.  Add the tomato sauce, red wine and stock, herbs and spices.  Add the broccoli stew for 2 minutes.  Lastly, add the leafy greens and veggie ground round and veggie sausage (if using) and heat through 1 minute.  Cool and ladle into containers for freezing or use in lasagna.

Lasagna

I use the Hardy Tomato Pasta Sauce as my base for lasagna.

Ladle the hardy tomato pasta sauce on the bottom of a lasagna pan.  Sprinkle with 1 cup shredded cheese.  Top with a layer of oven-ready lasagna noodles.

Next, top noodles with the following ricotta mix:

4 cups of ricotta cheese

2 heads of spinach sautéed in a pan

Mix together with a spoon

Next, top the ricotta mixture with another layer of lasagna noodles, then another layer of hardy pasta sauce, ensuring all signs of noodles are adequately covered.

Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, then sprinkle with remaining 3 cups of shredded cheese.

Tip:  By using an aluminum pan that comes with a cover, it makes it handy to freeze your meals.  Your meal can go right from the freezer into the oven after taking off the cover.  You can also transport a baked lasagna to a party and/or conveniently cover any leftovers.  For extra freezer durability, I would cover the food surface with a layer of saran wrap to reduce exposure to the air and the formation of freezer burn.

 

 

Bake lasagna from frozen at 375 degrees for 1 1/2 hours or from fresh for 1 hour.   You can also broil for the last 2 minutes to get nice browning on the cheese topping.

Chili

Battle this fall and winter chills with chili!   Here is a recipe I’ve been using for many years.

2 pounds ground beef or turkey or veggie ground round or lentils

1/2 chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 can black beans, drained

1 can kidney beans, drained

1 ear or can corn, drained

4 stalks celery, chopped

4 carrots, chopped

2 cans tomatoes, crushed

4 tsp. chili powder

1 can tomato sauce

2 cups vegetable broth or red wine

2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp. white wine vinegar

3 bay leaves

1 tsp oregano

1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped

1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes  (more if you like it spicy like me)

1 tsp. ground cumin

Sweat the onions in a stock pot with 1 tsp oil.  Add garlic and brown the meat, about 5 minutes.   Drain the oil and add remaining ingredients, stirring well to combine.  Reduce heat to low and let simmer, stirring occasionally, until chili is thick, 25 to 30 minutes. Add veggie ground round at the last minute or two.  Remove bay leaf before serving. Makes 4-6 servings.  Tastes even better overnight!

That Soup

Soup is always great to warm the insides after being outside, and even though we may not be able to relate to that while our weather is warm right now, in a month or two you’ll thank me for having this in your freezer at the ready.   I actually got this recipe from Steven and Chris’ CBC tv show, and it’s called “That Soup” after their guest has explained how this is her children’s favourite but that there wasn’t a specific name for it; they just called it “that soup,” and good old mom just knew what they meant.

Drizzle vegetable oil

4 honey-garlic sausages (500 g) or Tofurkey Italian Sausage (added last and just heated through before serving) plus a tablespoon of honey

1/2 onion

2 L chicken broth or vegetable broth

1 bay leaf

1 tbsp dried parsley

1 tsp dried thyme

1/2 head of chard leaves, kale or spinach, chopped

2 carrots sliced

2 stalks celery sliced

1 can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed

3 handfuls broad egg noodles

Brown the sausages in a pan with oil and drain on paper towels.  Simmer broth and herbs in a large pot, loosely covered, while you chop vegetables.  Add veggies to pot. Thinly slice the sausages and add to pot.
Roughly mash about 1/3 of the kidney beans and add, along with the whole beans, to the pot.  Add noodles to the pot.
Simmer 20 minutes, or until noodles and veggies are tender. Makes 6 dinner servings.

Note:  If you’re freezing, simmer for only 10 minutes.  Cool and then ladle into containers for freezing.

Mushroom Asparagus Quiche

This is tasty and comforting yet not heavy.  Quiche is great served with a side of That Soup or a salad.  This recipe makes two quiche pies.

2 unbaked pie crusts

1/2 cup pesto

4 cups sliced mushrooms, sautéed in butter about 1 minute

1 bunch chopped asparagus, sautéed with butter, salt and pepper about 1 minute

(optional: 1 cup chopped tomato)

7 eggs

1 cup milk (or unsweetened almond milk)

½ cup parmesan or nutritional yeast

2 cups shredded cheese

Beat the eggs and milk together.  Add the parmesan/yeast.  Bake pie shells 10 minutes. Spread the bottom of the pie shells with a layer of pesto.

Divide the mushrooms and asparagus among the bottom of the pie shells and sprinkle with cheese.  Pour the egg mixture over the vegetables.

Bake in the oven at 400 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until the pastry is golden and the egg becomes solid.

Cool and freeze.

Substitutions and variations: shrimp, spinach, chard, kale, smoked salmon, crab, broccoli, red or green peppers.

More general tips and tricks  for freezing

-Sauces made with cornstarch turn spongy when they’re frozen. If you plan to freeze a dish that calls for cornstarch, a good alternative is to use tapioca starch or arrowroot as a thickener instead.

-To ensure the veggies in soups and stews don’t get mushy after you thaw and reheat them, add softer veggies like green leafy veggies or even broccoli, cauliflower and asparagus last and only cook for half the time you usually would.  When you reheat them, it is essentially cooking them a second time, so only par-cooking them the first time ensures they will stay firmer.

-If you’re freezing leftovers, using containers like Tupperware that go from the freezer to the microwave can be a time saver.

-For large containers that fit an entire baked casserole, pre-slicing into individual serving sizes like you would a pizza will help make it easier later on.  For days when you only want to retrieve one or two servings, you can just take just what you need without having to thaw or reheat the whole thing.  This would also help with portion control and also makes it easier to lift out a piece of casserole with your spatula when you do reheat it.  You can separate each serving with a piece of parchment paper to make it even easier.

Notable vegan substitutions

Italian sausage – Tofurkey Italian sausage

Ground beef – Yves veggie ground round

Ricotta – Tofutti Better Than Ricotta

Cheese – Daiya cheddar or mozzarella

Parmesan – vitamin B flakes

There are of course hundreds of freezable entrees, but these are the favourites that the cold fall and winter months make us crave the most.  Please enjoy and share!

Cheers and Good Eats,

Silver

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